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17 Jul 2003 : Column 489W—continued
Procurement
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answers of 30 June 2003, Official Report, column 46W, on procurement, and 20 June 2003, Official Report, column 885W, on Type 23 frigates, which ships will be provided with the Sonar 2087 system; what plans he has for those which will not; and if he will make a statement. [125368]
Mr. Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave on 10 February 2003, Official Report, column 516W, 12 May 2003, Official Report, column 47W, and 13 May 2003, Official Report, column 159W, to the hon. Member for New Forest, East (Dr. Lewis).
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the savings have been achieved through (a) cancellation, (b) delay and (c) scaling back of procurement programmes in each year since 1997. [125612]
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Mr. Ingram: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Royal Irish Regiment
Mr. Mallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people serve in the Royal Irish Regiment. [125905]
Mr. Ingram: As at 18 June 2003, there are 2,620 full-time personnel and 1,340 part-time personnel serving in the headquarters, depot, general service and home service battalions of The Royal Irish Regiment.
RV Triton
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the trials programme of RV Triton. [126140]
Mr. Ingram: A comprehensive trials programme has now been completed in conjunction with the United States Government. These trials are an integral part of a research and development programme that also involves model experiments and computational analysis, and which is leading to the availability of design tools and design guidance for trimaran ships.
Service Manning Requirement
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what changes have taken place in each Service's manning requirement since April 1997. [125607]
Mr. Ingram: The trained requirements for the armed forces are as follows:
Note:
Due to founding methods, used totals may not always equal the sum of the parts.
Services Training
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when he will make a statement on progress in implementing the recommendations of the recent tri-service audit of initial training; [123942]
(2) what the estimated cost will be for (a) his Department and (b) each of the three services to implement the recommendations of the recent tri-service audit of initial training; [123943]
(3) when all the recommendations of the recent tri-service audit of initial training will be implemented; [123944]
(4) what funding has been allocated to implement the findings of the tri-service audit of initial training. [123945]
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Mr. Ingram: I refer my hon. Friend to the written statement I made on 16 July 2003, Official Report, columns 35–36WS.
Skynet 5
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when his Department expects to finalise the Skynet 5 contract with Paradigm; and if he will make a statement; [125570]
(2) on what grounds his Department chose the joint bid for the Skynet 5 deal from BAE and EADS; whether the departure of BAE affected the bid; and if he will make a statement; [125508]
(3) when the Government was first informed about BAE Systems' plan to hand its share of the Paradigm joint venture in Skynet 5 to the European Aeronautic Defence and Space group; how it was informed; how his Department was consulted about the transfer of Paradigm to EADS before the deal was made; and what the substance of such meetings was. [125507]
Mr. Ingram: The preferred bidder for Skynet 5 was selected because it offered the best value for money. The departure of BAES had no direct affect on the bid from Paradigm.
Paradigm informed the Ministry of Defence of the restructuring of its shareholding in January this year. A series of meetings took place between industry representatives and senior MOD officials to ensure that there was no adverse affect to Skynet 5.
The arrangements required to conclude the Skynet 5 deal are in the final stage. We expect to place the contract in the next few weeks.
Smart Acquisition
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what savings have been achieved through the Smart Acquisition initiative; and what the largest single saving is that has been achieved. [125611]
Mr. Ingram: Smart Acquisition is an integral part of Ministry of Defence business and it is no longer possible to attribute savings directly to Smart Acquisition.
Sonar 2087 Systems
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answers of 25 June 2003, Official Report, column 885W, and 30 June 2003, Official Report, column 46W, if he will name the ships to be fitted with the ordered Sonar 2087 systems; what his plans are for those which are not; and if he will make a statement. [124149]
Mr. Ingram:
I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave on 10 February 2003, Official Report, column 516W, 12 May 2003, Official Report, column 47W, and 13 May 2003, Official Report, column 159W, to the hon. Member for New Forest, East (Dr. Lewis). I have nothing further to add to those answers.
17 Jul 2003 : Column 492W
Submarine Threat
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his assessment is of the threat to UK forces from hostile submarine forces; and if he will make a statement. [125591]
Mr. Ingram: The capability to operate submarines remains a weapon system of choice for many potentially hostile nations. The potential threat to United Kingdom forces ranges from strategic missile submarines, through the nuclear or conventional submarine threats in open ocean, to the threat from smaller coastal vessels or mini-subs in littoral waters. The submarine threat is kept under constant review and the UK maintains an Anti-Submarine Warfare capability for both offensive and defensive operations.
Aircraft Armament
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the (a) Typhoon and (b) Joint Strike Fighter will be armed with a gun. [125613]
Mr. Ingram: We currently have no requirement for either Typhoon or Joint Strike Fighter to be armed with a gun.
Violent Conflict
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's estimate is of the number of people affected by violent conflict in (a) 2003 and (b) 2002; and whether he expects to meet his Department's Public Service Agreement in respect of this point. [125610]
Mr. Ingram: The Public Service Agreement (PSA) covering this issue is shared between Department for International Development, Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence to reflect the Government's closely coordinated approach to improving the United Kingdom's contribution to reducing conflict overseas through the Conflict Prevention Pools for sub-Saharan Africa and the rest of the world. The information sources we use to derive the number of people affected by violent conflict (the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the Journal of Peace Research, the International Institute for Strategic Studies, UN High Commission for Refugees and the United States Committee for Refugees) report annually and cover the figures collated for the previous year. Therefore, we do not expect to have the details for last year before the end of 2003 and the figures for this year before the end of 2004. Overall assessment of progress will be based on the data, but will also take account of factors beyond UK control, either in-country or within the wider international system.
The UK is beginning to make an impact in meeting the PSA targets. Examples of important initiatives include our post-conflict reconstruction work in Afghanistan and the Balkans, our political support to the Middle East Peace Process, our direct assistance to Sierra Leone and our support to African-led peacekeeping missions in general. UK efforts through the Pools to reduce the risk of conflict also include programme and project activities further afield, such as in Sri Lanka and Indonesia. We will continue to evaluate progress and improve the effectiveness of the Pools over the coming years.
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